Influence of thickness and morphology of MoS₂ on the performance of counter electrodes in dye-sensitized solar cells

• Lam Thuy Thi Mai,
• Hai Viet Le,
• Ngan Kim Thi Nguyen,
• Van La Tran Pham,
• Thu Anh Thi Nguyen,
• Nguyen Thanh Le Huynh and
• Hoang Thai Nguyen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 528–537, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.44

• -Newport-USA, Model No. 94061A). Simulated sunlight of 100 mW·cm−2 (1 sun) was generated and corrected by a 1000 W Xe lamp and an AM 1.5 filter. The photocurrent density–voltage (J–V) curves of the DSSCs were measured using a Keithley model 2400 multisource meter. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy

Engineered titania nanomaterials in advanced clinical applications

• Padmavati Sahare,
• Paulina Govea Alvarez,
• Juan Manual Sanchez Yanez,
• Gabriel Luna-Bárcenas,
• Samik Chakraborty,
• Sujay Paul and
• Miriam Estevez

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 201–218, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.15

• hyperthermic physiological responses. Titania is capable of producing a number of cytotoxic ROS in the presence of sunlight/UV light (e.g., •OH, •O2−, H2O2), as illustrated in Figure 6, which may contribute to the death of cancer cells, and has been deemed a suitable candidate for PDT [110]. The principal

• a significant photodynamic effect exhibited by PEGylated undoped-TiO2 with 75% killing of HeLa cells at a concentration of 5.5 μg/mL in response to UV or sunlight radiation [113]. TiO2 and ZnO2 are the most effective photosensitizers used in PDT. Yurt et al. conducted experiments in breast and

A comprehensive review on electrospun nanohybrid membranes for wastewater treatment

• Senuri Kumarage,
• Imalka Munaweera and
• Nilwala Kottegoda

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 137–159, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.10

• degradation. The membrane displayed an efficient photocatalytic capacity for MB, CR, and RhB [80]. Although TiO2 is abundant and inexpensive, it only converts to UV part of sunlight, which is only 5% of the solar energy. This makes the use of TiO2 impractical. To counter this drawback Liu and co-workers

A review on nanostructured silver as a basic ingredient in medicine: physicochemical parameters and characterization

• Gabriel M. Misirli,
• Kishore Sridharan and
• Shirley M. P. Abrantes

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 440–461, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.36

• dissolved oxygen and due to Ag3OH0 species acting as a shield and hindering the dissolution process of the AgNPs, as detailed in Figure 3 [55][56][57]. Stability Another factor that considerably changes the stability of AgNPs is the exposure to artificial or natural sunlight [53]. Grillet et al. studied the

Photothermally active nanoparticles as a promising tool for eliminating bacteria and biofilms

• Mykola Borzenkov,
• Piersandro Pallavicini,
• Angelo Taglietti,
• Laura D’Alfonso,
• Maddalena Collini and
• Giuseppe Chirico

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1134–1146, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.98

• membrane stress, which is enhanced by the photothermal effect upon sunlight irradiation [102]. Antibacterial continuous flow poly(dimethylsiloxane)-based microreactors with microchannels were fabricated using catechol-grafted poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) and NIR-active Cs0.33WO3 nanoparticles [103]. Upon NIR

• -responsive cesium tungsten oxide (CsWO3) nanoparticles were immobilized into polymer dots and demonstrated a high antibacterial activity due to the generation of photothermal heat upon 5 min of NIR irradiation (laser intensity 2 W/cm2) [104]. Recent studies have been exploring strategies in which sunlight is

• to be 100% at a 10 µg/mL concentration and 15 min exposure to sunlight. These authors also found the same antibacterial effect with thiolated iron-doped nanoceria upon sunlight exposure [106]. Conclusion Considerable progress in the field of antibacterial treatment has been made due to the

A few-layer graphene/chlorin e6 hybrid nanomaterial and its application in photodynamic therapy against Candida albicans

• Selene Acosta,
• Carlos Moreno-Aguilar,
• Dania Hernández-Sánchez,
• Beatriz Morales-Cruzado,
• Erick Sarmiento-Gomez,
• Carla Bittencourt,
• Luis Octavio Sánchez-Vargas and
• Mildred Quintana

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1054–1061, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.90

• fungal infections, employs visible light to activate photosensitive molecules, known as photodynamic therapy (PDT) [4]. PDT was discovered in 1900 when Paramecia microorganisms were exposed to a photosensitive molecule in conjugation with sunlight, which was found to eliminate the fungal activity of

Exfoliation in a low boiling point solvent and electrochemical applications of MoO₃

• Matangi Sricharan,
• Bikesh Gupta,
• Sreejesh Moolayadukkam and
• H. S. S. Ramakrishna Matte

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 662–670, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.52

• , the MoO3 dispersion in 2-butanone retains its intrinsic nature even after exposure to sunlight for 24 h. The composites of MoO3 nanosheets were used as an electrode material for supercapacitors and showed a high specific capacitance of 201 F·g−1 in a three-electrode configuration at a scan rate of 50

• was not altered after exposure to sunlight (UV radiation) for 24 h. The exfoliated MoO3 was used as electrode material for supercapacitor applications. The specific capacitance values were as high as 221 F·g−1 at 5 mV·s−1 with good rate capability and capacitance retention in a three-electrode system

• the color to blue. It is worth mentioning that exfoliation in 2-butanone did not result in any color change when exposed to sunlight (UV radiation) for 24 h unlike IPA and IPA/H2O mixture (Figure 2d). The probable reason is the aprotic nature of 2-butanone, which does not support the formation of H

Adsorptive removal of bulky dye molecules from water with mesoporous polyaniline-derived carbon

• Hyung Jun An,
• Jong Min Park,
• Nazmul Abedin Khan and
• Sung Hwa Jhung

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 597–605, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.47

• demand (COD) levels. Additionally, dyes decrease sunlight penetration through water, decreasing the natural restoration activity of rivers. Moreover, dyes in waste water are also considered problematic in the aesthetic sense, since the absorbance of dyes is usually very high (therefore, even small

• membrane separation [2][6][7]. However, these techniques are not very satisfactory for applications on a large scale. For example, dyes are very resistant against degradation by catalysis, with a common example given by the stable characteristics of dyes under even sunlight. Recently, adsorption has been

Gold and silver dichroic nanocomposite in the quest for 3D printing the Lycurgus cup

• Lars Kool,
• Floris Dekker,
• Anton Bunschoten,
• Glen J. Smales,
• Brian R. Pauw,
• Aldrik H. Velders and
• Vittorio Saggiomo

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 16–23, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.2

• exposing a solution of the silver precursor, sodium citrate, and a photopolymer initiator to sunlight for four months. When the same starting solution was exposed to incandescent light or xenon light to decrease the synthesis time, the final AgNP solutions presented different colorations. The dichroic

• . In the rest of this article, we will refer to “flashlight LED” and “CRI 95 LED” for specifying the two different light sources. In the sunlight, the cup also reflects light with a brownish colour, similar to the CRI 95 LED illumination (Supporting Information File 1, Figure S4). Although this

Semitransparent Sb₂S₃ thin film solar cells by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis for use in solar windows

• Jako S. Eensalu,
• Atanas Katerski,
• Erki Kärber,
• Lothar Weinhardt,
• Monika Blum,
• Clemens Heske,
• Wanli Yang,
• Ilona Oja Acik and
• Malle Krunks

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2396–2409, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.230

• following for reference: dye-sensitized – PCE of 9.2% at 60% AVT [5]; polymer – PCE of 4.0% at 66% AVT [6]; halide perovskite – PCE of 6.4% at 30% AVT [7]. Dye-sensitized, organic, and halide perovskite absorbers are generally sensitive to moisture, especially in combination with sunlight and air [8][9][10

• moisture and air as well as sunlight. Sb2S3 has attractive properties (Eg ≈ 1.7 eV, absorption coefficient α ≈ 1.8 × 105 cm−1 at 450 nm, anisotropic structure, inorganic) as a light absorber for conventional and semitransparent photovoltaic use [12][13][14]. Sb2S3 has been incorporated as a solar absorber

• 0.1 sun, and 10.2% at 0.03 sun, demonstrating the suitability of this solar cell for operation in direct sunlight, as well as under full cloud cover. Results and Discussion Quality assessment of USP-Sb2S3 thin films The substrate coverage of Sb2S3 layers on a glass/ITO/TiO2 substrate, annealed in

Construction of a 0D/1D composite based on Au nanoparticles/CuBi₂O₄ microrods for efficient visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity

• Weilong Shi,
• Mingyang Li,
• Hongji Ren,
• Feng Guo,
• Xiliu Huang,
• Yu Shi and
• Yubin Tang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1360–1367, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.134

• have gained attention due to their interesting geometrical and particular chemical properties [19][20][21][22]. These excellent properties are: (i) 1D materials have a long axis for efficient absorption of incident sunlight and short path lengths for the transport of photo-induced charge carriers; (ii

A highly efficient porous rod-like Ce-doped ZnO photocatalyst for the degradation of dye contaminants in water

• Binjing Hu,
• Qiang Sun,
• Chengyi Zuo,
• Yunxin Pei,
• Siwei Yang,
• Hui Zheng and
• Fangming Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1157–1165, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.115

• a sunlight simulator. The results showed that ZnO doped with 3% Ce exhibits the highest RhB degradation rate. To understand the crystal structure, elemental state, surface morphology and chemical composition, the photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron

• water with refractive index n = 1.33. The sunlight stimulator was represented by a time-harmonic incident plane wave with wavelength λ = 400–760 nm. The incident wave was set to propagate along the z-direction and polarize along the x-direction (the long-axis of the ZnO rod). According to Figure 3, we

• , then ZnO and a series of Ce-doped ZnO were synthesized by a one-step pyrolysis method. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by the degradation rate of RhB using a sunlight stimulator. The changes in crystal structure, Ce element state, morphology and chemical composition were characterized by XRD

Photoactive nanoarchitectures based on clays incorporating TiO₂ and ZnO nanoparticles

• Eduardo Ruiz-Hitzky,
• Pilar Aranda,
• Marwa Akkari,
• Nithima Khaorapapong and
• Makoto Ogawa

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1140–1156, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.114

• considered the most extensively studied solid among the diverse transition-metal oxides and transition-metal chalcogenides investigated with that focus over the last decades. However, TiO2 has disadvantages such as limited activity together with a reduced sensitivity to sunlight. Hence, alternative

Electronic properties of several two dimensional halides from ab initio calculations

• Mohamed Barhoumi,
• Ali Abboud,
• Lamjed Debbichi,
• Moncef Said,
• Torbjörn Björkman,
• Dario Rocca and
• Sébastien Lebègue

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 823–832, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.82

• earlier studies [42] that 2D materials can display a much larger sunlight absorption than commonly employed semiconductors. Also, the materials studied here can be employed in heterostructures to complement or replace other large-bandgap 2D materials, such as hexagonal boron nitride, or to dissociate

Reduced graphene oxide supported C₃N₄ nanoflakes and quantum dots as metal-free catalysts for visible light assisted CO₂ reduction

• Md Rakibuddin and
• Haekyoung Kim

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 448–458, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.44

• 13CH3OH, respectively. The photoreduction mechanism of CO2 to HCHO in the presence of the GCN-5 catalyst under visible light illumination is shown in Figure 13. The CN QDs absorb visible wavelengths of sunlight due to their appropriate band edge potential value, thus exciting the electrons. These excited

Gold nanoparticles embedded in a polymer as a 3D-printable dichroic nanocomposite material

• Lars Kool,
• Anton Bunschoten,
• Aldrik H. Velders and
• Vittorio Saggiomo

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 442–447, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.43

• cups using AuNP–PVA material showing the dichroic effect in artificial and sunlight. Supporting Information Supporting Information File 49: Supporting information for aspect ratio of AuNPs, UV–vis and TEM analyses of AuNPs and AuNP-PVA nanocomposites, pictures of AuNP-PVA 3D-printed cups and their

Development of an anti-pollution coating process technology for the application of an on-site PV module

• Sejin Jung,
• Wonseok Choi,
• Jung Hyun Kim and
• Jang Myoun Ko

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 332–336, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.32

• external surface pollutants, such as dust, yellow dust, animal excrement and rainfall sediment. These pollutants prevent sunlight from entering the PV modules and thereby degrade the power generation efficiency. Therefore, various studies have been conducted of late to effectively prevent the surface

Near-infrared light harvesting of upconverting NaYF₄:Yb³⁺/Er³⁺-based amorphous silicon solar cells investigated by an optical filter

• Daiming Liu,
• Qingkang Wang and
• Qing Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2788–2793, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.260

• solar cell, completely covering the photoactive area. Considering a practical use of the cell under sunlight, photoelectric measurements were conducted under AM1.5 solar irradiation. A bare a-Si:H solar cell without UC nanorods but with otherwise the same cell structure was used as reference. In Figure

Thickness-dependent photoelectrochemical properties of a semitransparent Co₃O₄ photocathode

• Malkeshkumar Patel and
• Joondong Kim

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2432–2442, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.228

• ][14][15][16][17]. Dual-bandgap Co3O4 films provide distinct band states in the energy–momentum diagram, which is advantageous to reduce the thermalisation-related losses in the sunlight-driven hydrogen generation. Dual bandgaps in Co3O4 originate from the crystal-field split Co 3d states at the

Hierarchical heterostructures of Bi₂MoO₆ microflowers decorated with Ag₂CO₃ nanoparticles for efficient visible-light-driven photocatalytic removal of toxic pollutants

• Shijie Li,
• Wei Jiang,
• Shiwei Hu,
• Yu Liu,
• Yanping Liu,
• Kaibing Xu and
• Jianshe Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2297–2305, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.214

• established. However, the conventional wastewater treatments are usually accompanied by high cost, low efficiency and other insufficiencies [2]. The decomposition and mineralization of pollutants under sunlight through photocatalysis has been demonstrated to be an effective and green technology for

Localized photodeposition of catalysts using nanophotonic resonances in silicon photocathodes

• Evgenia Kontoleta,
• Sven H. C. Askes,
• Lai-Hung Lai and
• Erik C. Garnett

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2097–2105, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.198

• population remind us of the importance of finding new, clean pathways to cover our energy needs. Fuel generation from renewable energy resources could be one of the “clean” approaches for meeting our energy requirements. Although, sunlight is the most abundant source of green energy, its long-term storage is

• light absorption and conversion to chemical energy take place. The photo-electrodes are in contact with an electrolyte that is the primary source of fuel together with the sunlight. In such a system, light absorption by the electrodes leads to the creation of electron–hole pairs, which after their

Cr(VI) remediation from aqueous environment through modified-TiO₂-mediated photocatalytic reduction

• Rashmi Acharya,
• Brundabana Naik and
• Kulamani Parida

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1448–1470, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.137

• photoreduction of Cr(VI) under sunlight illumination [143]. Its enhanced photoreduction capacity over TiO2 nanosheets, P25 and CD–P25 was attributed to the better charge transfer as well as higher light absorption properties of CDs. The in situ formation of H2O2 promotes the photoactivity to a great extent

• %. Photocatalytic reduction of chromate ions under sunlight over CuBi2O4/TiO2 has also been reported by Lahamar et al. A remarkable performance of 98% reduction is obtained in less than 4 h for a Cr(VI) concentration of 30 mg L−1 at pH ≈4 by using 1 g L−1 catalyst. The kinetics of chromate photoreduction is well

Ag₂WO₄ nanorods decorated with AgI nanoparticles: Novel and efficient visible-light-driven photocatalysts for the degradation of water pollutants

• Shijie Li,
• Shiwei Hu,
• Wei Jiang,
• Yanping Liu,
• Yu Liu,
• Yingtang Zhou,
• Liuye Mo and
• Jianshe Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1308–1316, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.123

• ]. However, achieving high efficiency for photocatalytic conversion under natural sunlight irradiation is still a great challenge because many catalysts only respond to ultraviolet (UV) light [5][12]. Exploring photocatalysts that can be driven by visible light, which comprises 43% of solar energy, is

• photocatalytic performance for dye degradation under light irradiation [30][31][36][37]. Unfortunately, due to its wide bandgap of about 3.1 eV, Ag2WO4 has limited photocatalytic activity under sunlight, which severely limits its application and illustrates the urgency for optimization of Ag2WO4 to overcome

Computational exploration of two-dimensional silicon diarsenide and germanium arsenide for photovoltaic applications

• Sri Kasi Matta,
• Chunmei Zhang,
• Yalong Jiao,
• Anthony O'Mullane and
• Aijun Du

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1247–1253, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.116

• dynamic stability of the compounds, which is inferred by analyzing their vibrational normal mode. SiAs2 and GeAs2 monolayers possess a bandgap of 1.91 and 1.64 eV, respectively, which is excellent for sunlight harvesting, while the exciton binding energy is found to be 0.25 and 0.14 eV, respectively

Review on nanoparticles and nanostructured materials: history, sources, toxicity and regulations

• Jaison Jeevanandam,
• Ahmed Barhoum,
• Yen S. Chan,
• Alain Dufresne and
• Michael K. Danquah

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1050–1074, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.98

• human, animal, and plant activities by blocking and scattering the sunlight. The volcanically erupted particles may possess heavy metals that are toxic to humans [69]. The short-term effects of particles from volcanic eruptions include nose, throat, eye and skin irritations and bronchial symptoms, while